– – -Seizes items worth N1, 827, 362, 619 .00
By Asuquo Nuwak
The Seme Customs Command of Nigeria Customs Service, has collected a total sum of One Billion Nine Hundred and Four Million, Four Hundred and Fifty-Nine Thousand, Three Hundred and Ninety Naira, Seventy Seven Kobo (N1,904,459, 390.77) only, representing 97.2% of N1,960,000,000 revenue target for 2023.
The Customs Area Controller, Seme Customs Area Command, and Co-Chairman Seme-Krake Joint Border Post, Comptroller Dera Nnadi, mni, made this disclosure of the revenue figure during a media briefing on the activities of Seme Area Command from January 23rd 2023 to 8th September 2023.
In the corresponding period under review for 2022, the revenue was Eight Hundred and Eighty Five Million, Five Hundred and Forty Three Thousand, Ninety Eight Naira Eleven Kobo (N885,543,098.11)
The implication is that the Command’s revenue profile witnessed a tremendous increase of N1, 018,916, 292. 33 (51.98%).
This tremendous increase in the revenue profile of the Command was as a result of painstaking efforts made by the leadership of the Command in partnership with the stakeholders to ensure compliance with the revenue generation agenda.
In the area of anti-smuggling operations, Comptroller Dera Nnadi, recalled the past headline seizures of fake six million US dollars, equivalent to two billion seven hundred million (N2.7 bn) Naira.
In addition to this, the Command has made significant impact in the area of anti-smuggling activities which has led to seizures of other notable items ranging from 6,569 50kg bags of rice, equivalent to 16 trailer loads of foreign parboiled rice with Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N312, 242, 064. 93k between January and August 2023.
Further breakdown of seizures include 13, 835 x 30 liters Jerrycans of Premium Motor Spirit, equivalent to 415, 050 liters or 13 petroleum tankers with Duty Paid Value (DPV) of N738,276, 461k; 15, 389 of general merchandise goods;
hard drugs and narcotics, which include 41 parcels of Cannabis Sativa,
4,900 tablets 225mg of tramadol tamol-x,
3,600 tablets 225mg tramadol royal 225,
157 tablets of Heineken Ecstacy,
864 packs of cigarette.
In the same vein, Comptroller Dera Nnadi, noted that, officers and men of the Command, who acted on credible intelligence, intercepted One Thousand Three Hundred and Sixty Four (1,364) 30 Liters Jerrycans of Premium Motor Spirit, equivalent to forty thousand eight hundred (40,800) litres, over one tanker load, with a Duty Paid Value (DPV) of (N24, 663, 355) at the early hours of Friday 8th September, 2023 along the Badagry Coast
He disclosed that, the Duty Paid Value (DPV) for the total items seized for the period of January to 8th Septmeber 2023 is One Billion, Eight Hundred and Twenty Seven Million, Three Hundred and Sixty Two Thousand, Six Hundred and Nineteen Niara (1, 827, 362, 619. 00)
In addition to the above, and in line with the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) dictate of encouraging its personnels, the total of 18 officers and men of the Command, who were involved in the seizures of fake six million USD ($6,000,000) currency, fifteen (15) fake international passports, ten (10) driver’s license, and donkey skins in January, 2023 were commended by the Ag. Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR, dsm, fnipr, psc (+).
The Commendation letters and Congratulatory letters from the Command would be presented to the beneficiaries.
Comptroller Dera Nnadi, appreciates the Comptroller- General of Customs, for his support to the Command. He also appreciates the Seme Badagry Community for their cooperation, while he further appreciates officers and men of the Command for their gallantry and patriotism.
Comptroller Dera Nnadi, equally extends greatest appreciation to the media for highlighting the modest effort in Seme Area Command.
He noted that Seme Area command is the seat of the Seme-Krate Border Post, the foremost frontier for trade in West and Central Africa Area command, and one of the busiest boundary lines in Africa.
Comptroller Dera Nnadi, further said, Seme Area command advantageous ly lies on the Abidjan-Lagos Corridor (ALCO) which connects Lagos-Cotonou-Lome-Accra-Abidjan, with a population of over 350 million people.
This corridor and indeed the Command, according to him, account for about 70 percent of the transit traffic in the ECOWAS sub-region.
According to him, this route is also a component of the Lagos-Kano-Jibia (LAKAJI) corridor which extends from Lagos through Ogun , Oyo, Kwara, Niger, Kaduna, Kano, Jigawa and Katsina states in Nigeria.
He further stated that the LAKAJI corridor compliments the trade route from Abidjan through Cotonou to Niamey, and even to Libya and Egypt.
He explained that, the significant of this corridor as an economic, cultural and political platform for regional integration of West Africa can not be over emphasised.
His words: “Seme Area command is the platform for the sustenance of the regional integration expected to be driven through the ECOWAS Protocol on the movement of persons, goods and services, the implication of the various trade policies of the sub-region and the Continent, especially the ECOWAS Trade Liberation Scheme (ETL) and the emerging African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)”.
In the words of Comptroller Dera Nnadi: ” the objective of the ETLS and AfCFTA is to liberalise trade by abolishing customs duties and free imports and exports, and elimination of non-tariff barriers among member states.
He said the objective is intended to achieve un hindered market access to the countries of the sub-region. He explained that Seme Area command, has worked assiduously to ensure that the region optimises this expectation.
According to Comptroller Dera Nnadi, “among the trade blocks in Africa, the ECOWAS region has a population of 428.6 million people and ranks second in Africa after East Africa region, with a population of 474.9 million people. It is expected that the potential inherent in this advantageous position will be translated to increase in trade among countries of the ECOWAS sub-region, especially between Nigeria and the Republic of Benin with a combined population of nearly 250 million people.
Sadly, he said, ECOWAS rank fourth at 10 percent when it comes to trade within the African Continent, Southern African Development Community (SADC) with the population of 69.2 million people ranks first in trading among themselves at 32.12 percent Common Market for East and Southern Africa ( COMESA) at 20.32 percent, and the Community of Sahel-Saharan states (CEN-SAD) at 16.59 percent.
Comptroller Dera Nnadi, said, this is an indication that the ECOWAS region is yet to maximize the gains of ETLS. Again, he noted that, this underscores the level of the limited preparedness for the African Continental Free Trade Area AfCFTA.
Comptroller Nnadi, said, several factors have been adjudged to hamper trade between Nigeria and her proximate neighbour within the sub-region, especially transit trade across the countries and along the corridor. He disclosed that, there have been several complaints by operators against the closure of the borders, the non adherence to transit agreements signed under the ECOWAS, World Trade Organization (WTO), World Customs Organisation (WCO) and the General Agreement on Trade and Tariff.
He said, upon his assumption of duty on 23rd January, 2023, he pledged to adopt a new strategies to boost trade, while enforcing the nation’s anti-smuggling laws along the Abidjan-Lagos (ALCO) in line with the ECOWAS protocols on free movement of persons and goods.
He also promised along with officers and men of the command to encourage compliant traders along the corridor, bearing in mind the challenges of the Joint Border Patrol (JBP) as one that is still recovering from the effects of the border closure.
In the words of Comptroller Dera Nnadi: ” It is important to note that the Nigeria 2022 Fiscal Policy Measures by the Federal Ministry of Finance lifted the ban on export of goods imported into Nigeria, hitherto prohibited under items 8 Schedule 6 of the Common External Tariff. It is hoped that the stakeholders will take full advantage of this gesture, while our brothers from other countries in the sub-region particularly the Republic of Benin will reciprocate this gesture where there are existing trade barriers.
He said, it is gratifying to note that the CGC, the Government of both countries and the stakeholders are all on the same page, regarding the need to improve the relationship with a view to maximize the opportunities offered by the proximity of the two countries to the border and develop trade along the corridor.
In conclusion, he said the media briefing will not be completed without mentioning notable impacts made by the Command, in the key performance indicators, which are revenue collection and anti-smuggling operations.